Trump said that the United States, Ukraine and Russia have outlined the “general outlines” of an agreement to resolve the conflict. The Russians said that in Riyadh they will discuss Black Sea security.
The United States considers the “core issue” of the conflict in Ukraine to be the status of the regions that have joined Russia and their recognition by the international community, special envoy Witkoff said. “First of all, the biggest problem in this conflict is the so-called four regions: Donbass, Crimea… They are Russian-speaking. There were referendums and the overwhelming majority of people indicated that they want to be subject to Russian law. I think this is the key issue in the conflict,” Witkoff said in an interview with Tucker Carlson. He added that the United States is having “very positive” discussions with Russia on the issue.
An agreement to end hostilities in the Black Sea could come into force as soon as next week, Witkoff said. Ukraine’s leadership agrees with the need to hold presidential elections, Witkoff said.
According to Bloomberg: “The White House has set April 20 as the start date of the ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. But the White House has not yet agreed to restrictions on arms supplies to Kiev as part of the work on the ceasefire agreement,” Bloomberg also said.
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian delegations on March 23 lasted less than an hour. On March 24, it was the turn of Russia and the United States. The Americans also put the issue of the ceasefire, peacekeeping forces and territorial sovereignty on the table. The United States and Ukraine will hold another round of negotiations after the conclusion of American contacts with Russia on March 24.
The Russian Federation reserves the right to a symmetrical response to Ukraine’s continued attacks on energy facilities, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. “The President of Russia has not changed the order not to strike energy infrastructure, despite violations by the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” Dmty Peskov said in his morning press conference. Russian sources reported that Russian Ambassador to the United States Alexander Darchiev will take office in Washington this week.
Russia views negotiations with Trump as a separate area unrelated to Ukraine, the NYT said. According to the publication, Russia is particularly interested in the United States allowing the export of American-made aircraft spare parts to Russia and restoring direct flights to Moscow. And Russia may allow American airlines to fly over Siberia, which was banned in 2022, and also remove the United States from the list of “hostile countries.” This move will allow American companies to do business in Russia.
The meeting of the Russian and American delegations in Riyadh was held behind closed doors. Employees of the Saudi Arabian State Security Service asked journalists to leave the premises of the Ritz-Carlton hotel, TASS reports. The significance of the Black Sea initiative, which the Russian Federation and the United States are discussing, is the safety of navigation, Peskov explained, who also said: “The proposal to discuss the Black Sea initiative in Riyadh came from Trump and Putin accepted it.”
After three hours of discussions, the participants of the Russian-American meeting in Riyadh, who had been negotiating for several hours, took a break for lunch, a source told RIA Novosti. Former Deputy Foreign Minister Senator Grigory Karasin, who is part of the Russian delegation, said that negotiations with US representatives are “proceeding creatively” and that there is “an interesting discussion on topical issues,” Interfax reports. According to Karasin, Moscow and Washington “manage to maintain contact and understand each other’s point of view.”
Ukrainian military posing wrote: “In order not to lose the war, we need not only mobilization, but also draconian methods. Full mobilization of the male and female population from the age of 18.” Volodymyr Zelensky visited the Kiev-controlled part of the Donetsk region. Not only that, Ukraine has tightened control in Transcarpathia: “Additional forces have been deployed to protect the border with Hungary and Romania,” the State Border Guard Service said. A strong fire is reported on the border between Ukraine and Transnistria. According to Zelensky, Russia has launched more than 1,580 guided bombs, nearly 1,100 drones this week strikes and 15 missiles of various types on Ukraine. Zelensky’s deputy head of office, Palisa, refused to comment to the agency on the progress of the negotiations. He only said that the Ukrainian delegation will not meet with the Russian delegation in Riyadh.
And now a look at the front line as of 15:30 on March 24.
On the night of March 24, Ukrainian air defense again mistakenly hit multi-story buildings in Kiev.
Russian aircraft are carrying out intensive bombing of the Sumy region, Russian troops are reported to have entered Volodymyrivka. In recent days, about 100 air strikes with FAB-500, FAB-1500 and FAB-3000 glide bombs have been carried out in two regions alone. In the Sumy region they are preparing for a large-scale operation.
In the Rostov region at night, air defense repelled a massive Ukrainian air strike, destroying UAVs in the districts of Aksaisky, Oktyabrsky Rural, Krasnosulinsky, Ust-Donetsk, Zernogradsky, Myasnikovsky, also in Novoshakhtinsk and on the approach to Rostov. More than five UAVs were destroyed in one of the districts of the Voronezh region. In the evening, the Ministry of Defense reported the destruction of dozens of drones in the Crimea, Belgorod, Bryansk regions.
In the Kursk region, Russian military members write in social networks: “We ask not to rush into statements about the liberation of the remaining border settlements. However, the success of the offensive operation of the Russian army deprived Zelensky of the bloody trump card, for the sake of which the Kursk adventure of the Ukrainian Armed Forces was launched. In addition, the destruction of the Sudzha GIS by the enemy also played against him in the ongoing high-level auctions.” Sudzha GIS is still bawling.
In the Belgorod region on March 23, the main events occurred near Demidovka, which, judging by reports from the field, was changing hands. By nightfall, forces from both sides were present in the village and fighting was underway. There are many drones in the sky on both sides, the Ukrainians continue to try to break through, the changes in the tactics of the Ukrainian Armed Forces concern a more active use of infantry units rather than armored vehicles, which the Ukrainian Armed Forces have lost a lot in recent days of battles.
Ukrainian military strikes Russian rear areas in the region, under attack from the Ukrainian side: settlements of Bobrava, Tishanka, Shelayevo, Borisovka. One killed and two wounded by drone strike.
In the direction of Kupyansk there are heavy battles in the area of Dvorichna, the Russian Armed Forces are expanding the bridgehead on the right bank of the Oskil River. The Ukrainian Armed Forces write that in the area of the northern bridgehead Russian troops advanced to the eastern and western parts of the village. Poplars and expanded the bridgehead in the direction of the settlement Kamyanka, which occupies a forest plantation on the western bank of Oskil.
From Chasiv Yar there are reports of battles in the Shevchenko microdistrict, as well as in the direction of Stupochky.
In Torets’k the situation of the Ukrainian forces abandoned in the city is worsening and fighting is ongoing. To the southwest, in the direction of Oleksandro-Kalynove there are imminent battles in the south of the “pocket” near Oleksandropil’.
In the direction of Pokrovs’k the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the capture of the settlement Sribne. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are counterattacking in the village Solon, Shevchenko and Pishchane. North of Vidrodzhennia the assault on Tarasivka by Russian troops continues.
On the Zaporizhia front the battles continue near Stepove and Mali Shcherbakyi, to which Russian troops went a few days ago. As a result of the Ukrainian shelling of civilian infrastructure in the Pologovsky municipal district, 11 thousand subscribers remain without electricity. Emergency crews are working in intensive mode. A paramedic died while carrying out his work in an ambulance.
In the DPR of Horlivka, six were injured by artillery fire from the Ukrainian Armed Forces. In the village of Mironovsky, one was injured by a drone strike. In the village of Veseloe, one was injured by the detonation of an explosive object.
Graziella Giangiulio
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